Education Quiet since Sep 28 Updated Sep 28, 2026
The end of the Regents exam requirement
The state Board of Regents voted to end the Regents exam as a graduation requirement, making current high school seniors the last class that must pass four of the tests before the requirement phases out by 2028. The decision caps a yearslong graduation-requirement overhaul but leaves open how schools and colleges adjust once diplomas are no longer anchored to a statewide exam.
The story so far
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Sep 27, 2026 Latest
Former Gov. George Pataki called the Regents' vote to drop the exams as a diploma requirement "incredibly stupid," and Gov. Hochul's office said she shares concerns about the lack of clarity over what will replace them; the state Education Department said Pataki has not been engaged with the issue since 1998.
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Sep 24, 2026
New York City's Education Department told the City Council that if the state ends the Regents exam requirement in June 2027, the Class of 2028 would graduate by earning 44 credits alone with no replacement exam in place, a rule that would also cover the roughly 212,000 current freshmen and sophomores, Chalkbeat and Gothamist reported.
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Sep 15, 2026
New York's Board of Regents voted to end the Regents exam graduation requirement, making current seniors the last class required to pass four of the tests before the requirement is phased out starting in 2028.
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